iLoud Micro Monitors $200 -- regularly $350

[Mad Maxx]

Don't know if this is a Black Friday sale or what, but these great little studio monitors are available directly from IK Multimedia for $200. That's $150 less than normail retail price.

iLoud Micro Monitors in black or white

I've used a pair for my laptop audio since 2019.

 

[xx0xx]

I wonder how these would compare to my Edifier R1280DBs in terms of overall quality. These are smaller of course, but seem to be getting rave reviews

 

[t1337duder]

I wonder how these would compare to my Edifier R1280DBs in terms of overall quality. These are smaller of course, but seem to be getting rave reviews

In this case you're comparing studio monitors to HiFi speakers. I haven't heard the Micro Monitors but instantly I can see that the specs are very bullshitted (45Hz from 3" drivers? lol). Having said that, HiFi speakers are better than studio monitors for general usage. Studio monitors are meant to sound revealing (e.g. bad) depending on the source material. HiFi speakers on the other hand are tuned specifically to sound good (even the neutral ones).

Frankly if you already own speakers valued at $150 - should be looking at $500+ ones. All speakers in the $300 range are going to be similar and not great, unless you're doing some very low volume listening. I'd probably recommend spending at least that much if you want something decent. Speakers are a better investment than PC hardware, anyways.

 

[Prince Valiant]

In this case you're comparing studio monitors to HiFi speakers. I haven't heard the Micro Monitors but instantly I can see that the specs are very bullshitted (45Hz from 3" drivers? lol). Having said that, HiFi speakers are better than studio monitors for general usage. Studio monitors are meant to sound revealing (e.g. bad) depending on the source material. HiFi speakers on the other hand are tuned specifically to sound good (even the neutral ones).

Frankly if you already own speakers valued at $150 - should be looking at $500+ ones. All speakers in the $300 range are going to be similar and not great, unless you're doing some very low volume listening. I'd probably recommend spending at least that much if you want something decent. Speakers are a better investment than PC hardware, anyways.

A couple reviews with measurements:
http://noaudiophile.com/IK_Multimedia_iLoudMM/
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...surements-and-quasi-anechoic-spinorama.10988/

The short of it is they "manage" it but it's volume limited. I think they're fine at this discounted price if you understand their limits and/or have limited desk space.

 

[t1337duder]

A couple reviews with measurements:
http://noaudiophile.com/IK_Multimedia_iLoudMM/
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...surements-and-quasi-anechoic-spinorama.10988/

The short of it is they "manage" it but it's volume limited. I think they're fine at this discounted price if you understand their limits and/or have limited desk space.

Digging deeper into the thread, they appear to have everyone's favorite "hiss" feature (not uncommon to cheaper active speakers).

These would be very nice entry level speakers, but I wouldn't "upgrade" from another set of entry level speakers to these. Unless you're seriously limited on space, I'd definitely upgrade to something beefier and a few hundred dollars more expensive at least.

Tbh active speakers are pretty weak in value proposition versus passive speakers with amps. The cheaper passive setups sound leagues better than cheap active setups (which may hiss).

 

[TheToE!]

These are awesome btw and I speak from experience as I've purchased these. For near field listening which is what they are for, they rock.

 

[Prince Valiant]

Digging deeper into the thread, they appear to have everyone's favorite "hiss" feature (not uncommon to cheaper active speakers).

These would be very nice entry level speakers, but I wouldn't "upgrade" from another set of entry level speakers to these. Unless you're seriously limited on space, I'd definitely upgrade to something beefier and a few hundred dollars more expensive at least.

Tbh active speakers are pretty weak in value proposition versus passive speakers with amps. The cheaper passive setups sound leagues better than cheap active setups (which may hiss).

I think it's a bit unrealistic to expect it to be inaudible at this price point. Someone could get actives from Genelec, Neumann, or similar, if they want something better, but it's a big price jump. You're probably still dealing with a little hiss in a passive setup with a comparable budget. There are tradeoffs for either active or passive.

I have a passive setup for my CRT desktop but it eats up a lot of space compared to something like the iLoud. A small table needed to be built for the desktop to make room for the speakers on the desk and a shelf needed to be cleared for the amp.

That said, I agree with your previous point about these being something like a sidestep if you already have decent speakers.

 

[TheToE!]

For what it's worth I didn't notice any noise on mine. I wonder if these folks are picking up noise through an internal or onboard DAC in their computer.

 

[Mad Maxx]

For what it's worth I didn't notice any noise on mine. I wonder if these folks are picking up noise through an internal or onboard DAC in their computer.

Same. I've heard the dreaded hiss from Presonus, JBL, KRK, and other actives, but not the slightest hint of it from my Micros whether I have them connected to my iPad Pro or MacBook Air.

 

[njp142]

I do have some hiss on mine. I bought these at $200 a few years ago and I’m generally satisfied with them, but I wouldn’t give them a rave review and definitely wouldn’t pay $350 for them. I bought them to replace some M-Audio AV40s (?) and they were a significant size decrease which is what I was looking for. It was definitely a sound quality decrease but that was to be expected.

I did get the white though and kind of wish I got the black. The two tone of the white doesn’t look great to me. And obviously there’s nothing special/limited about the white if I bought them 2-3 years ago.

 

[TheToE!]

I bought them to replace some M-Audio AV40s (?) and they were a significant size decrease which is what I was looking for. It was definitely a sound quality decrease but that was to be expected.

Are you shitting me? I've owned the av40's as well and I couldn't stand them. Maybe I listen at lower volumes?